Guest Post – Sandy Williams Tells Us What Is Trunked?

Today I am pleased to welcome Sandy Williams, author of the very interesting The Shadow Reader /McKenzie Lewis series. This is a series that revolves around the fae and they are nothing like I’ve read before. The world Sandy has created is just amazing and if you have not yet checked it out, Sandy has some good news below. Now without further ado, I give the floor to Sandy.

Hi all,

I want to start off by saying thank you to Julie for having me here on the Yummy Men blog. I’m grateful to all the bloggers and readers who’ve supported The Shadow Reader books. You’ve given McKenzie’s story more life than I ever could on my own.

If you haven’t started the series, the first book, The Shadow Reader, is on sale for $1.99 on all ebook platforms until tomorrow, January 3rd. It’s the best and most affordable time to meet McKenzie and her friends. 🙂 Now, on to the post!

What’s Trunked?

Almost every writer has books they’ve “trunked.” They’ve hidden them under their beds or buried them deeply in their hard drives because the books never sold, they moved on to new projects, or they realized the trunked books were not their best writing.

Every once in a while, I take a look at my trunked novels. Sometimes I read them, and I think, “Woah! Thank God I never published this!” Other times a get a little nostalgic and want to resurrect the stories and characters. Just the other day, I was looking through my old story files. Here are a few of the novels that I’ve trunked, their status, and whether or not I have plans to resurrect them in the future.

The Fifth Cut. Science fiction with a touch of romance.

Word count: 71,000

Status: Permanently trunked.

First Paragraph: Michael Furyk watched his father’s image flicker above the holo-projector in the center of the garden. The groundskeeper had sculpted the vine-wrapped trellises and spiraling hedges so that the pentagon shaped device became the focal point of the cemetery. Almost two meters in height, its five sides matched the finish of the granite wall curving around the clearing. It was an extravagant gravesite, one more fitting of a king than a senator from a small planet, but Michael’s father had never been a modest man. In the past ten years, he hadn’t been much of a father, either.

Comments: This was a book I worked on for half a decade. I played with it through college then, after I graduated, I decided it would be THE novel. The first book I finished. I wrote and wrote and wrote on this book, and when my husband’s work sent us overseas back in 2008, I was determined to finish it. That didn’t happen. In the middle of that trip, I woke up one morning inspired to write something completely different. That something is the book below, and I finished the first draft in 11 days.

—–

Stealing Ellum. Young Adult Science Fiction

Word count: 67,000

Status: Finished, but needs to be completely rewritten.

First Paragraph: Elena hooked her fingers through the chain-link fence and scanned the Nokia Theater’s backstage parking lot, her stomach twisting into knots. She felt slightly nauseous and the rest of the small crowd was getting on her nerves. They were hanging around for the chance to catch a glimpse of the headlining band, maybe even get an autograph or two, but not Elena. She needed to talk to Dan Cannon, the facility’s booking manager.

Comments: This was the first book I ever finished writing. It reads like that, too. I can see so many things wrong with it now, so much that needs to be changed, fixed, or improved. I still think the premise is solid, and that it could appeal to a large number of readers. I’m dying to rewrite this, but I’m not sure when I’ll have time.

—–

A Taste of Fey. Urban fantasy

Word count: 80,000

Status: Finished.

First Paragraphs: My colleagues warned me not to accept this assignment, but I was young (relatively) and foolish (definitely) and I needed to prove myself.

It should have been a simple job: escort my client to and from the Mocking Bard and make sure no one harasses, hunts, or harms him. Sure, the piano bar might be in the middle of the Were’s territory, but I worked for a wolf and most of the employees there knew me. I shouldn’t have anything to worry about. Then again, my client wasn’t called Thrill Bill for no reason.

Comments: Despite the title, this is a vampire novel. It’s the second novel I wrote, and I’m really, really proud of it. The thing is, it’s a vampire novel, and those are all but impossible to sell to New York these days. Plus, now that four years have passed since I wrote it, I see so many ways to make it better. It’s not bad as it is. In fact, I think it’s a pretty darn good book and that a lot of readers would enjoy it, but those changes I want to make are keeping me from dusting it off and publishing it.

I’m so glad The Shadow Reader didn’t end up trunked! I love McKenzie and the fae world, and The Sharpest Blade wraps up her story just like I envisioned. I hope readers enjoy reading all The Shadow Reader books as much as I enjoyed writing them.

Sandy is the author of The Shadow Reader novels. For a limited time, the first book, The Shadow Reader, is on sale for $1.99. Sandy worked as a librarian until her husband whisked her off to London on an extended business trip. She’s now back home in Texas, writing full-time, raising newborn twin boys, and squeezing in time to play geeky board and card games like Settlers of Catan, Dominion, and Runebound. You can find her on twitter and check out her website here.

Now it’s giveaway time! Sandy is offering a SIGNED copy of any of The Shadow Reader books. That’s right. You pick whether or not you want The Shadow Reader, The Shattered Dark or The Sharpest Blade and bang, it’s yours and it’s signed! To enter, just leave a comment below before Monday January 6th 2014 11:59pm EST and you’re in. Giveaway open internationally. Good luck to all and a great big THANK YOU to Sandy for the awesome post today. 🙂

Share the post "Guest Post – Sandy Williams Tells Us What Is Trunked?"

I LOVED The Shadow Reader and how original and exciting it was. I’m also glad it didn’t get trunked! I had actually been waiting for The Sharpest Blade to release so I could read the final two back to back and not have to deal with anymore waiting because my patience is nonexistent. 🙂

I agree with everyone that these sounds awesome 🙂 But it’s fun to “hear” about the creative process. Congrats on the new release! I’ve only read book 1 and I loved it. Definitely looking forward to catching up! Happy New Year!

First thank you so much for the giveaway. I love a book in hand. Just something about that. If I was the lucky winner I would want the first book. I would read and review it as well. Like all your links and thanks again

I’m so glad The Shadow Reader wasn’t trunked too! This has become one of my favorite Urban Fantasy series ever and though I’m scared and sad to read the last book, I love everything about the series and I can’t wait to see if everyone got the ending they deserved. Aren! <3
Also, I hope she publishes A Taste of Fey, I love getting my vampire book fix every once in a while.
Thanks for the giveaway!
Xo

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About Me

I'm Julie and this blog is all about Romance and Urban Fantasy Book Reviews, Author Interviews, Guest Posts, Slices of Life and Silly Stuff Too!

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I loved, loved, loved this book! I will definitely read it again and recommend it to anyone who will listen!
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